Sleep Until Dusk
by Saiyaness28
Summary: Sophia, a vampire, is about to enter into an arranged marriage with her best friend, Rainier. However, her familiar, Jedediah, makes things increasingly difficult for them. Will Sophia choose to loose what she already has with Rainier for Jedediah?
1. Chapter 1

Sleep Until Dusk

Chapter One: Bedtime Stories

The sun rose upon that morning like every other. It took it's position in the sky above the colonial style house and the pastures that surrounded it, like a king residing over his court. The cows and horses that resided in the fields lowed greetings to each other as they fed upon the sweet summer grass. The world was bright with sunshine, no grey clouds lurked above, threatening to ruin the perfect day, still the windows of the pretty little house on the hill were drawn tightly shut. The satin curtains were just as important to keep the sunlight out as they were to keep the secrets that the house held within.

"Have you brushed your teeth, Sophia?" Asked Patricia Haze, as she glided around her daughter's bedroom. The spirals of her golden hair bounced and swayed around her waist with every movement, the floorboards of the old house creaking under toe. She went to a book case, decorated with stuffed toys, and took _Alice in Wonderland _from the top shelf.

Little Sophia bounced over to her pine bed and settled down inside. "Yes, mama." She piped in her singsong voice, pulling her rainbow colored quilt up to her chin.

"Good." Said, Patricia. She smiled lovingly at her little girl and held up the thick book, covered in tattered and old bindings. "Let's read a few more chapters of _Alice_. We're at such a good part." Sophia bobbed her head happily and Patricia took her seat in a child sized chair by Sophia's coffin shaped bed. "Now where were we?" She began, scrolling a finger playfully along the age worn pages of the novel. "Ah! Here we are!" She continued on from where they last left off, as the beautiful mother ran her elegant fingers through her child's mahogany hair. Sophia's deep, black eyes shimmered with childish wonder as she listened to the story intently.

"'_Cheshire Puss,' Alice began, rather timidly, as she did not at all know whether it would like the name: however, it only grinned a little wider. 'Come, it's pleased so far,' thought Alice, and she went on. 'Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?'_

'_That depends a good deal on where you want to get to,' said the Cat._

'_So long as I get SOMEWHERE,' Alice added as an explanation._

'_Oh, you're sure to do that,' said the Cat, 'if you only walk long enough.'"_

A sudden crash startled the young mother into silence. Snapping the book closed, she leapt to her feet and stared towards the bedroom door. She listened carefully. She could hear male voices. Men who did not belong there. Six people lived in the house, but her husband was the only male.

"Is that daddy?" Asked Sophia, fright in her voice. She could hear a man shouting obscenities.

Patricia turned her head slightly and placed a finger against her lips. "Quiet." She whispered. The men down stairs were heavy footed. Every step made the rickety floorboards of the farm house creak loudly in protest against their weight. Patricia strained her ears to listen more carefully. She could hear her two sisters and her cousin screaming in terror. Their voices changed, becoming raspier as they transformed, taking their natural form. The other women hissed and snarled. Nails scraped against wood. One of the men screamed. Then there was the echo of a crossbow's release, followed by her sister Gloria's terrible scream of agony, her death rattle, as she fell apart.

"No! No! Not here! Not them!" Patricia cried, covering her mouth to muffle the sound of her voice.

"Mama!" Sophia whimpered, jumping from her bed and rushing to her mother's comforting embrace.

With the echoes of the crossbows and the screams of their kin ringing in their ears, the two hurried over to the book case. Patricia tilted back a ruby red novel without a title, and the bookcase shifted to the side, revealing a secret passageway that lead to various tunnels beneath the house's foundation. "This way." Patricia urged her daughter to move faster as she tugged her along behind her. "We must wake your father. Hopefully they haven't reached our bedroom yet."

"What's happening? Who are those people?" Asked Sophia innocently, tears dripping from her wide, black eyes. Her hand trembled in her mother's grasp.

"Extinguishers." Replied Patricia, breathlessly. She looked worriedly over her shoulder to make sure that they were not being followed.

"What are they?" Asked Sophia. Her parents had never discussed them before. At least never around her.

Patricia hesitated to answer at first. Sophia was so young. So innocent. Telling her the awful truth didn't seem fair. She wanted her little girl to grow up without fear, without having to look over her shoulder her whole life like she had to. However…keeping Sophia in the dark didn't seem like an option anymore. "There are some humans in this world who know of the Nosferatu's existence and they wish to snuff us out. They hunt us like we're big game…like our mounted heads will bring them glory." Hatred and pain gripped at Patricia's heart. Her true voice began to take over. The beast, mixing with the beauty. "Those savages! Not even our babies are safe from them! And they call _us_ monsters!" She raged, her voice a rattling hiss, a tiger's warning growl.

Mother and daughter finally, reached another secret door, after walking up several stone staircases and winding through many dark passageways. Patricia pressed in a loose brick and the door opened slightly, just wide enough that she could pass through. "Stay here." She ordered and left Sophia to wait within the safety of the tunnel. She ran over to the large black coffin at the center of the room and threw back it's lid.

Within, laid stark white bones, swamped by empty clothing. "Wake up! Wake up, Sampson!" Patricia begged, rattling the bones with a firm hand on the skeleton's shoulder blade. Tears splashed against the skull's cheekbone, as she bent over him and laid a kiss on his lipless grin. "Please, you must wake up, darling. The hunters. The Extinguishers are here. They've found us again, Sampson."

She pulled away as the bones of the skeleton's rib cage flexed wider. The skull opened wide. There was a wheezing inhale of breath as air passed through the seemingly long dead corpse. Slowly, tissue, blood vessels, organs, and muscle appeared, retaking their natural place within the confines of the body and over the bones. Sampson Haze took shape before his wife and daughter's fearful eyes. His black eyes opened and he jolted upright in his morbid bed. "Patricia." He gasped, his deep voice raspy at first, then resettling into the learned smoothness. He snatched her hand and held it tightly. "What's happening?" He asked, his free hand reaching over to wipe tears from his wife's slowly contorting face. As she was growing more and more upset, her control over her mortal disguise was faltering. "Are you alright?"

"The damned Extinguishers are here, Sampson." Patricia growled, her voice near demonic. "They've killed Gloria." She spat. Sampson frowned as tears rolled over his hand and Patricia's dark irises began to ooze outward to take over the whites of her eyes.

"We had better get out of here." He said finally, jumping out of his coffin. With a firm hand around Patricia's wrist, he hurried her back towards the tunnel.

Patricia resisted, pulling back and reaching towards the opposite door. "No! We have to help the others! Jennifer and Lola may still be alive!"

"Forget them!" Sampson screamed, jerking her closer to his body. "Jennifer and Lola aren't fledglings anymore. They're grown women. They can take care of themselves."

"How can you say that?" Patricia demanded, her now completely black eyes narrowing to slits. "You're the leader of this coven. It's your job to protect us. All of us!"

Sampson's eyes narrowed back at his wife and he bore his fangs at her. "Don't be stupid!" He hissed, pointing towards Sophia, who was peeking out at them through the doorway of the secret passage. "We have a child to think about. We can't let those brutes get their hands on Sophia. We can't let them kill her before she's had the chance to live. We have to protect her."

"Daddy!" Sophia cried. "I smell smoke!"

"Shit!" Sampson spat in exasperation. "Come on, Patricia. We have to go!"

Still Patricia resisted. "But…my family…" She croaked, looking back longingly at the door.

"It's too late for them. I'm sorry, but we must leave now. Please." He begged, his angry voice becoming softer with his pleads, seeing how devastated she was. The others were all related to her. She was having a difficult time accepting that they were probably already gone. "Please, love, for Sophia."

"Mama! Daddy! The smell of smoke is getting stronger!" Sophia screamed, her whole body trembling now in her fright.

Finally, her daughter's words seemed to break through the madness that had come over Patricia and she let her sister and cousin go. She had to make sure her baby survived this. As a mother, that was her duty. Squeezing her husband's hand, they entered the passageway and closed the secret door behind them. The smell of smoke was indeed thick and the tunnel was hotter than it had been when they first entered. "The damned beasts are burning the house down around us!" Sampson snapped, all his teeth now pointed and sharp as razor blades. "Grab, Sophia. We have to make a run for it." Patricia scooped up their little girl and held her close to he heart as they ran for their lives, back through the tunnels.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two: Up in Flames

The family of three ran down the hidden corridors of the escape tunnels. The small passageways were quickly filling with smoke and rising in temperature. Little Sophia coughed and gasped through the thick smut filling her lungs. Patricia pulled the child's collar up over her nose and told her to breathe as slowly as she could. Afterwards, her black eyes lifted to burrow holes into the back of her husband's head. He had long discarded his shirt, due to the incredible heat, and she could now plainly see the shifting muscles beneath his pale flesh. The inner beast was stirring, having been awakened by his rage. The hands that swung at his sides were pulsing, twisting, the fingers and nails elongating. His legs twisted grotesquely and he stumbled briefly. "What are we going to do, Sampson? It's light out and we're almost at the end of the passage." She asked, hoping that he had the answers, as he so often did. He was the wisest man she'd ever known.

Yet, this time he was at a loss. He turned his head to look back at her, his lips pulled away from a mouth full of gnashing teeth in an agonized grimace. "I don't know." He rasped. "I'll think of something." They pressed onwards in silence, both secretly knowing that this night would not end well for them. Their family had been reduced from six to three in less than an hour's time. It may still grow smaller.

Finally, they reached the door that separated them from their freedom. Sampson reached the door first and went to throw it open. He reeled away with a hiss of pain.

"Sampson!" Patricia screamed, horrified by the burns that now blotched the pale skin of his palms.

"There's flames on the other side of the door. We'll have to make a run for it. Rein in the transformation. Our human skin can withstand the sun better than our real ones." Sampson hissed, pain still in his voice. A too long tongue slipped from his lips and racked across his injured hands, leaving healed flesh behind it.

Both mother and father growled with effort as they concentrated on the difficult task at hand, to take back their emotions enough that the demonic features of their real faces and bodies disappeared. Their sharp teeth were blunted, their nails retreated, and the whites of their eyes returned. They were beautiful humans once more. No one would know the difference. The only tell tale sign of their monstrous nature was the cold black of their eyes, so dark that the pupil and iris blended together and no light reflected there.

"This is going to be painful." Sampson warned. "When I open the door, we must make a break for the trees. Their shade will provide a little protection from the sun, at least until we can reach a car or some other building."

"What about the Eris' barn?" Patricia suggested, looking back down the corridor for the hundredth time, fearful of pursuers.

"Good idea. The Extinguishers will look for us there, eventually. But maybe we could hide there momentarily, just long enough to rest and recover. We won't survive a long trek in the daylight." Said Sampson, running his hand irritably through his thick brown hair.

"I'm ready if you are." Said Patricia with a weak smile, a crease forming between her eyebrows as she struggled to keep up the human disguise. She quickly rolled up onto her tiptoes and gave Sampson a peck on his lips. Agony rolled through her body at the thought that this brief kiss could be the very last they ever shared.

He and Patricia grouped together, she shielding Sophia with her body and he shielding Patricia with his own. With a final roar, they burst out of the protection of the dark tunnel and ran through flames out into the deadly morning sunshine.

Patricia and Sampson screamed at the terrible pain. Their skin burned and bubbled like boiling tar. There was nothing more painful than sunlight to the Nosferatu, but at least with their human skins, they'd have a chance. Without it, they would have self-combusted as soon as they exited the comforting darkness of their once beautiful home. Sophia cried and let out a shrill scream. There was so much pain. Her little body couldn't take it. Her mother clutched her tighter against her chest to muffle the sound.

"S-Sampson." Patricia gasped with ragged breaths. She buried her face into his chest, seeking some sort of relief from the terror and pain.

"A little…just a little further." He gasped in return, his eyes narrowed and teeth clenched against the onslaught on his senses. The sunlight scorched his body, his human flesh falling away in patches. His eyes were nearly completely blind in the light. Everything looked blurry, as if he were miles underwater. He could just make out the green blur of the tree line. How much further beyond that was the Eris' barn? Damn. There was no way they'd make it.

Once they reached the shade of the trees, the pain eased off enough that they could move a little faster and think. Patricia was in bad shape. Her Nosferatu features were showing again, even more so that his own. Her right arm had completely transformed and her face was twisted. Sharp teeth peaked from her lips. A steady flow of tears fell from her pitch black eyes, like waterfalls from the mouths of caves. She was trembling as her muscles shifted, transforming more of her body. Her other arm elongated and her fingers stretched to their full length, ending in needle-like nails. Sampson took Sophia from her so that Patricia could concentrate on fixing the disguise. Sophia was crying, shuttering as her chubby face twisted and shifted. Her nose shrunk, her teeth became needle sharp. She clutched at his body with long claws.

"Let's keep moving." Sampson ordered, turning to move onward through the trees. "Don't look back." He ran several feet before realizing that his were the only footsteps he could hear. He stopped and looked back. Patricia stood at the edge of the tree line, staring back at their burning house. "Patricia!" He called out to her, dread filling his gut.

Patricia stared at the fire, it's flames writhing within her dark eyes. Her flesh boiled and peeled away, showing patches of her real bone white skin. "Fifty years of running…and I'm still not far enough away." She rasped with a sob. "The demons always find us." Her legs shook violently and gave out beneath her. She let out a screech of remorse and sorrow. She cried into her clawed hands.

"Patricia!" Sampson called out again, hearing her spewing nonsense in the old tongue as she cried and wailed. "We need to go now, before they-" His words were cut off at the sound of a stake whizzing through the air. It found it's mark in Patricia's chest and she fell limp on the ground.

Sampson stuck his hand into his mouth and bit down to keep from screaming, as he ducked down in the forest underbrush. He held his daughter tightly, forcing her face down into his chest so she wouldn't see what was coming.

He watched a man in camouflage approach Patricia's twitching body. The man stopped beside her and cocked his head in the side. In the firelight he could see the gleam of a scar that ran from the man's hairline to his chin. He was missing an eye on that side, the eyelids were shown shut. "Whoops, seems I missed your heart." The man teased in a level voice. He took a lighter from his pocket and flipped it open. "Oh well, I'd much rather kill you like this, anyway." He tossed the lighter onto Patricia's body and she went up in a gulf of flame as if she were made of lighter fluid. The air was filled with her screams of agony.

"Mama!" Sophia cried, wiggling out her father's hold. She jumped down and started to run towards her mother's burning form.

"No Sophia!" Her father stopped her, grabbing her by the waist and hoisting her back into his protective arms.

"Mama! Mama!" Sophia screamed, flailing madly.

"I'm sorry, baby, but we can't help her now." Sampson whispered, clasping a hand over his daughter's mouth and rushing deeper into the forest before his wife's murderer could catch up.

It was no use, trying to keep up the disguise, with hate, anger and despair rolling through him as it was. Sampson fully transformed and leapt through the forest, bounding from tree to tree with his spindly arms and legs. Sophia clung to his chest, her little arms wrapped tightly around his neck. She felt water splash against her cheek and lifted her head a bit to look upon her father's monstrous face. Tears were falling freely from his hollow eyes, streaming down his cheeks and over the webbing of teeth that filled his mouth. He let out a sorrowful screech, as he sank his claws once again into the trunk of a tree and leapt towards the next. Sophia could tell that her father was in pain. She was as well, but the shade of his body kept her from feeling the full effect of the sunlight pouring through the canopy above. His skin was shuttering and steam rose from every pore. She looked over her shoulder and saw that the forest was giving way to a clearing. Fear surged through her then. Once her father left the protection of the forest, he'd burst into flames without his human skin. He was so distraught, he didn't seem to notice where he was.

"Daddy!" Sophia cried, reaching up and pulling on his hair. "Stop! We're almost in the sun!"

Sampson blinked out of the wild stupor he'd been in and stopped abruptly, the claws on both his hands and feet digging into the soil. He raised up his hands and stared at them, his fingers opening and curling back towards his palms. "I-I don't know if I can conjure the disguise again." He rasped.

"You've got to." Sophia said, her brows angling over her dark eyes. "You'll die if you don't. Please, try."

Sampson closed his eyes and concentrated. He tried to put Patricia out of his mind, to push all his grief to the side, long enough to make it to the Eris' barn. But try as he may, he couldn't get the image of her body, twisting and screaming as she burned, out of his mind. He collapsed on the ground, a sobbing mess. "I-I can't. I can't. I need…" His teeth snapped together with an audible sound. "I need to kill something." Hoisting himself up, he unsteadily got to his feet again. He sniffed at the air and his eyes narrowed. An interesting scent had caught his attention. The musk of a male human, carefully masked by the hormones of a female deer. He sat Sophia down in the grass. "Stay here." He ordered, before dashing off, disappearing into the misty green.

Sophia curled up under a bush, her whole body aching. The forest was silent, beyond the sound of claws scraping across bark. The birds had stopped chirping. The cows and horses in the fields beyond the forest no longer spoke to each other. Even the leaves stopped their rustling. Suddenly, a human's scream echoed through the trees. Sophia curled into an even tighter boll.

A few moments later, she peeked out from beneath the bush, having heard dragging sounds. She saw her father, his human skin now fully restored. Behind him, he dragged the body of a deer hunter. He wore the same camouflage as the Extinguishers, but with an orange vest and paint on his face. His windpipe protruded from a gaping wound on his throat, his head nearly severed from his body. Sampson brought the man's body to rest in front of the bush. "Sophia. Come on out." Said Sampson. He waited patiently as she crawled out from under the bush. "Feed. It'll make you hurt a little less and restore your human skin." He looked back towards the clearing ahead. His eyes squinted against the bright sunshine pouring towards them. "The Eris' property should be in that clearing. As soon as you're finished, we'll make a run for the barn. Drink as much as you can. The trip's going to take much more out of you, now that your mother isn't here to help me shield you from the sun."

He turned away from her as she fed and sat down with his back against the trunk of a tree. He pulled his knees up to his chest and clasped his head in his hands. He was tired and broken. The emotional pain was taking more out of him than the physical. Patricia and Sampson had been together for nearly thirty years. They'd always been smart about every move they made. They never stayed in one place for very long and they only killed humans that wouldn't be missed. When Patricia became pregnant, they decided to try and settle down in one place for a while, just until the baby got a little older. They got too complacent. They let down their guard…and now…Patricia was dead. The woman he'd chosen to bind his soul with forever…was gone.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three: The Good Half

Sampson and Sophia collapsed onto the hay covered floor of the Eris' barn. Their bodies shuddered with agony. Steam rose from their skin. Their long nails dug into the floor as their fingers tightened reflexively.

"Daddy." Sophia rasped weakly. Tears fell from her eyes, forming a puddle beneath her face. "It hurts." Her voice cracked.

"I know, sweetheart. I'm sorry." He replied, the sound garbled in his throat. There were places on his body where the sunlight had cut straight to the muscle in the brief moments that they were fully exposed. He reached over shakily and stroked his little girl's straight brown hair, the same shade of rich mahogany wood as his own. As the long, silky strands passed through his claws, he thought sadly of his wife and bitterly wished that Sophia had inherited her curls. He clenched his jaw and lifted himself to his feet. He tried to ignore the radiating pain, but could not hold back the moan that escaped his teeth filled mouth.

His dark eyes fell on the goats that blinked blankly at them from a small pen. "This'll make us feel better." Growled Sampson, beneath his breath. He tilted his head to the side, cracking the bones. Then he rolled his shoulders to relieve the tension in his upper torso. He stalked towards the pen and yanked a black and white female from the others. With a swift twist of her head, he snapped the goat's neck and went quickly to feeding. His teeth tore into the goat's jugular. Blood rushed into his mouth and dripped from his chin, staining his bare chest and stomach with red.

A swift tug on his striped pajama pants interrupted his meal. Retracting his teeth from the goat's throat, he looked down at Sophia's eager face. "May I have some?" She asked, reaching up.

Without hesitation, he handed her the goat, and allowed her to drink away the last bit of blood that was left within it's body.

When the meal was through, and their bodies had repaired themselves, he scooped Sophia up and scurried up a ladder into a dark hayloft with her on his back. "Get some sleep. We'll be leaving tonight." He said, as he settled Sophia down on a pile of hay.

"Where are we going?" She asked.

She'd always had an inquisitive nature. Sampson smiled. She got it from her mother. "We're going to head south, to Savannah. I know of a larger coven there that may be able to take us in."

"Are you sure that they'll help us? Mama says that every coven has to take care of themselves." Said Sophia, her eyelids drooping with sleep.

Sampson frowned. His heart clenched in his chest at his daughter's use of the present tense, as if her mother would show up at any moment. Fine and dandy. Alive. "Maybe not." He answered truthfully. "But we have to try. The larger the coven, the less likely the Extinguishers will chance a direct attack like the one they pulled tonight. Even though I know I'll have to give up being leader if we join with the Sweet coven, I'm willing to set aside my pride to ensure your safety." He reached over and brushed Sophia's bangs away from her face. "I don't want you to ever go through this again." He leaned over her and kissed her forehead. "Sleep now." He rose to his feet and walked towards the drop off of the hayloft.

"Where are you going?" Sophia asked, panic gripping her. Was her father going to leave her alone? What if the Extinguishers came back for her?

"Nowhere. I'm going to stand guard while you rest. Sleep until dusk, Sophia. We'll leave as soon as the sky turns dark." He said, stepping out onto a thick wooden beam. He crouched there, where a shadow blotted out the beam, and waited. After a few moments, he looked over his shoulder at where Sophia lay sleeping and smiled sadly at the small bones that littered her makeshift bed.

The hours ticked by painfully slowly. Sampson remained on his guard. He remained crouched on the overhead beams, only moving from his vantage point in the shadows to take out his frustrations on the remaining goats. Finally, the sun set and the sky became black.

"Sophia." Sampson nudged at her bones with his bare foot.

The bones stirred, air passed through them as she took in the breath of life once again. Her body reassembled and retook the human façade that was so essential to their survival. Sophia sat up and rubbed at sleep filled eyes. "Daddy? Where's Mama? I had a scary dream. We were being chased by monsters and they got her."

"It wasn't a dream. You're mother's gone." Spat Sampson. He caught himself, surprised by the cold hollowness of his own voice. "We're on our own now." He added softly.

Sophia down cast her eyes, her whole body slumping under the enormous weight of the truth. "Oh." She sighed. "I-I forgot. I remember now."

"Let's go." Sampson scooped her up and guided her onto his back. He needed to move. He was tired of sitting and waiting. His whole body felt like a tightly coiled spring ready to snap.

He leapt down from the hayloft and landed silently on his feet. He ran out of the barn and across the open lawn of the Eris' house. Tom Eris' truck sat idle in the dirt driveway. His hound dogs barked restlessly from their pen behind the house. At his approach, they began to whine in fear. They could feel his venom in the air, smell the scent of death carried on the wind. When they reached the old, worn out Ford, Sampson jerked open the drivers' side door, breaking the lock, and swung Sophia over into the passenger seat. "Buckle up." He ordered, as he ripped out a panel beneath the steering wheel to expose the needed wires.

Sophia could hear the growl in his voice. It hadn't left since her mother told him of the attack. It was forever present now, that demonic edge. Anger had taken over now and she wasn't sure if he'd ever break free of it's control. She did as she was told and clicked her seat belt into place across her lap. She watched Sampson hotwire the truck. Sparks flew through the air at each contact of the exposed wires. They flittered across the inky surface of her father's eyes eerily. Sophia had never seen his eyes so dark, so empty and cold. He hardly looked like her father at all. Finally, the truck roared to life.

At nearly the same time, the farm house's screen door opened and swung shut. An orb of light lit the back of Sampson's head. "Get your hands up!" Growled Tom Eris' familiar elderly voice. There was the click of a pistol being cocked. Sophia watched as Sampson's black eyes shifted to glance back at Mr. Eris. She felt her stomach drop and her chest tighten. The coldness remained in her father's face.

Sampson blinked and his eyes returned to normal. He painted on a friendly smile, his teeth all straight and blunted. "Stay quiet." He mouthed to Sophia and stood up straight. He raised up his hands and turned towards Mr. Eris.

"Haze?" Mr. Eris said in surprise. He lowered his revolver slightly. "Why are _you _trying to steal my truck?"

Sampson lowered his hands, seeing that the old man didn't have the guts to pull the trigger. "Sorry Mr. Eris. There's an emergency. I'm going to need to borrow your truck for a bit."

"What happened? I can give you a ride if you need it that badly." Said Mr. Eris kindly. The flashlight's beam lowered and Mr. Eris' eyes got as large as saucers. "W-where did that blood come from?" He asked, his voice quivering in fright. He'd noticed the wash of crimson that covered Sampson's front.

Sampson grinned devilishly, his eyes glinting in the dark.

Sophia pulled her legs up into the seat and covered her mouth with her hands as she watched her father draw closer the elderly farmer. Mr. Eris had always been kind to their family. He brought them vegetables from his garden all the time. He brought her candy. She liked to play with his grandchildren when they were in town. She liked the old man a lot, but she knew what was coming. She could see it in the way her father moved. Languid movements, muscles tensed beneath the skin. Friendly smile, disarming the victim, distracting him from seeing the lengthening fingers on his right hand. In one, easy movement, Sampson swung his arm around and stabbed his transformed hand through Mr. Eris' chest, obliterating his heart. Sophia flinched and screwed her eyes shut at the sickening sound of the man's chest exploding. Sampson flung Mr. Eris' body off his arm, uncaringly and stepped over his corpse like he were avoiding a mud puddle. He strode over to a clothes line, where forgotten laundry hung in the night breeze. He took a white t-shirt and some jeans from the line and threw them on, leaving his pajama pants on underneath. He found the farmer's work boots on the front porch, discarded by the front door, and slipped those on as well before returning to the truck.

"Did you have to kill Mr. Eris?" Sophia squeaked as Sampson barreled down the highway. "I liked him. He was nice."

"He was in our way." Sampson replied, coldly, his dark eyes facing straight ahead.

"He said he would help us." Sophia protested, tears welling up in her eyes.

"He was human!" Sampson spat at her, sharp teeth bared. "Just like the monster that burned your mother alive!" His eyes narrowed cruelly as his clawed hands tightened on the steering wheel. "The old fuck deserved it. Now shut up. I can't take your whining any more."

Feeling her lower lip quivering, Sophia turned away and pretended to watch the walls of thick forest on either side of the highway whiz by. Tears streamed down her face, but she didn't let her father see how much his nasty words hurt her.

Sampson could hear her sniffling, could see the shivering of her shoulders and the reflection of her sobbing face in the window. He felt his chest tighten with remorse. He shouldn't have snapped at her like that. She was young. She didn't know the truth of the world yet. She didn't know how evil humans could be or understand how little they could be trusted. She'd learn. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have yelled at you." He sighed, trying his best to erase the growl in his voice. "It's just…." Tears threatened to come. His throat was sore from fighting them for so long, but he swallowed them back yet again. "I miss your mother. Half of my soul has died." He paused briefly, swallowing hard again. "The good half." He looked over in the cup holders between them and saw a bag of butterscotch hard candies. He took one and tossed the rest of the bag onto Sophia's lap. "That's all yours. I know how much you like them."

They both unwrapped their pieces of candy and popped them in their mouths. Sampson smiled at Sophia, the candy making one cheek chubbier than the other. Sophia smiled weakly back with chipmunk cheeks filled with candy on both sides.

The drive from the rural outskirts of Ellijay, Georgia to Savannah was long and Sophia passed it by stuffing herself with candy and bobbing her head to the classic rock music that blasted from the beat up Ford's radio. She tried her best to keep her mind on other things and not on the missing majority of her family. She missed her aunts and her cousin. They all looked similar to her mom, with crazy curls and quick smiles. They'd play make believe with her all night long if she asked them to and they never complained. They seemed to enjoy it, in fact. As if pretending to be princesses or warrior dragon slayers allowed them to fulfill childhood dreams. Most of all she missed her mother. And by the look on her father's face, she wasn't the only one. His black eyes were narrowed sharply, glaring at the road ahead, his grip on the steering wheel tight. He would smile reassuringly at Sophia from time to time, sing along with the lyrics of a long forgotten song or make a silly joke. She knew it was a lie. He only did those things to keep her in good spirits. Eventually, the fake happiness faded and the anger returned with a vengeance. He would get quiet again and the hate would pour from his skin in a nearly tangible mist.

After what felt like a lifetime, they were trolling the streets of downtown Savannah, passing tall brick buildings, beautiful Victorians painted an assortment of colors, and peaceful looking parks with tall trees and enormous fountains decorated with mermaids and fish men. The drove slowly passed an old Victorian townhouse. It's exterior was painted a grayish tone of purple. From the porch ceiling hung a custom light fixture made of green glass. From within, burned a bright light, beckoning onlookers in. "Here we are, Sophia." Said Sampson as he parallel parked in front of the house. "You see the green light?" He asked, pointing towards it. "It's a beacon. Wherever the green flames burn, you'll find friends. People like us. Remember that."

They got out of the truck and approached the front door, casually but carefully. Sophia clasped her father's hand, her body feeling stiff with the worry that filled her. What would happen to them if the Sweet coven didn't like them?

Sampson knocked on the door. Three loud and distinct knocks. A few seconds later, the door opened and they were greeted, not by a Nosferatu as they had expected, but by a human. A middle aged woman with short blond hair and a few age lines around her eyes smiled broadly at them. "Can I help you?" She asked kindly. Sophia's brows furrowed in confusion. There was something…off about this woman. Her expression and her voice appeared far too sweet. Too forced. She looked up at her father for confirmation. Was this right? Were they in the right place? Had he noticed the woman's strangeness? He looked unaffected and unconcerned.

"My name is Sampson Haze. This is my daughter, Sophia. I need to speak with Nickolas Sweet. It is urgent." He spoke clear and precise, his voice strong and level.

The woman's brown eyes flickered with recognition as they passed over Sampson's tall frame. She nodded and stepped to the aside to allow them to enter. "This way, Mr. Haze. The master is with his family in his private study." She explained as she shut the door behind them. She walked ahead of them as they followed close behind. The entrance opened up to a large living room. Leather couches and formal chairs were huddled together, all occupied with Nosferatu, both male and female. The air smelled of sugar and baking dough. They were cooking something. Something sweet and delicious.

"That woman." Whispered Sampson, having noticed Sophia's confusion at the door. "She's a familiar. Noseratu sometimes keep human servants. They run errands for them during the day and provide blood in-between hunts. You'll notice several around here. We never bothered with any, but they're popular among the larger covens. Especially those who live in the big cities."

They were led up a winding staircase and into a large library. Custom bookshelves lined every wall. At the center, a handsome man sat at a mahogany desk, a woman and child lounged in a loveseat in front of the desk. The woman was lovely. Her black hair was cut fairly short for a woman, but it only seemed to make her look all more feminine. She smiled with a friendly air at them, even as the male glowered at Sampson. The little boy in her lap looked about Sophia's age, perhaps a little older. The bangs of his black hair almost touched his long eyelashes. He smiled at Sophia, but that smile didn't touch his eyes. A great sadness remained there, in those dark depths.

"What do we have here?" The male asked, rising to his feet beside his desk. He strode towards them, every movement illustrating his confidence. "A new refugee, here to beg entrance into my coven?" The man smirked, his eyes meeting Sampson's.

Sophia watched as her father's jaw clenched and the muscles in his forearm writhed beneath the skin, like worms. "I don't beg." Sampson hissed. "You should know that, Nickolas Sweet."

"Sampson Haze?" Nickolas gasped, his eyes widening with surprise, then growing blacker with anger. He reeled around and backhanded the familiar across the cheek. "Fool!" He spat. "This man's an alpha! Didn't you see that? You shouldn't have let him through the door!"

"I'm sorry, master!" The woman cried and ran quickly from the room.

Nickolas' human skin exploded off of him, his body transforming instantly. A rattling hiss erupted from his chest as he crouched in front of them, his claws extended, ready to fight. "Came for a rematch did you? Come on! I'm ready! I've grown a lot stronger since our last fight. This time I'll win for sure!" He snarled.

Nickolas held up his hand in a calming gesture. "I'm not here to challenge you, Nickolas." He assured him.

"You don't want to fight?" Asked Nickolas, standing straight in an almost human pose. His arms were crossed over his chest, while his legs were spread a good distance apart. "That's new. Back in the day, you'd take any opportunity you could to "show your dominance" as you put it." With a sigh of exasperation, he conjured the human skin once again. He fell back into the learned humanity quite easily for their kind.

"Yes…well…things are different now." Sampson began, laying a protective hand on his daughter's shoulder and drawing her closer to him. "My coven was attacked by Extinguishers. My daughter, Sophia, and I are the only survivors. I'm here to _ask_ that we be accepted into your coven, Nickolas, as much as it pains me to admit."

"Everyone else is gone? What about Patricia?" Asked Nickolas, his brows furrowing slightly.

"Dead." Sampson muttered.

Nickolas began to laugh and Sampson's muscles began to writhe all the more. "So the woman you fought me so hard for is dead?" He smirked. "What happened? Did the great Sampson Haze not cut it as leader?"

"Nick!" The woman snapped. She grabbed his shoulder. "Stop it. The man just lost his bond mate. It's not something to joke about. How would you feel if something happened to me?"

"No." Sampson stopped her. "He's right. I failed them. All of them. It's my fault that they're dead. That's why I want merely to join your coven. I don't have what it takes to lead any coven, let alone one this size."

"I…don't know." Nickolas shook his head. "Given our past, I don't really trust anything you say."

"Nick, please. He has a little girl. We need to help them. Sampson can't protect the girl alone forever."

"You don't know Sampson like I do, Nadia. He offers one hand in peace, but arms the other. He's a snake in the grass, always has been." He shifted his gaze up and down Sampson's body, sizing him up. "Look at you, Sampson. You're an alpha to the core. Don't tell me that if given the chance, you wouldn't try to overthrow me, because that would be a load of bull."

"You won't have to worry about that. I'm not the man I used to be, Nickolas. Those murderous humans burned the house down around us. I knew that there were some that were still alive, but I left them to burn so that Patricia, Sophia and I would have a better chance of survival. I was a coward. I don't have any right to seek leadership. I won't do it again. I'm not worthy. I only want to make sure that my daughter is safe. She's all I have left of my coven. I can't let her die as well. I refuse to fail her too. If it is only my presence that concerns you, then please, just take her. Let her into your coven. I'll leave and never darken your doorway again, so long as she is cared for."

"No, Daddy!" Sophia cried, clinging to his pant leg. "Don't leave me here alone! Please!"

"I have to do what is best for you, Sophia." Said Sampson, swallowing hard at the crushed look on her face. "I'm your father. I have to make sure that you have a long, happy life…even if I can't be apart of it."

"For God's sake, Nick! Let them join!" Nadia pleaded with her husband. She felt terrible for the two refugees.

"I can't just take them in, even if I do feel sorry for them. As a dominant male, Sampson is a rival. He'll always be a threat. I can't forget that." He said, still watching Sampson carefully, expecting him to pounce on him at any moment.

"Will you take Sophia at least?" Sampson asked, feeling defeated. He should have known Nickolas would never help him.

"No." Nickolas shook his head. "We already have too many fledglings. An orphan would be more trouble than she's worth."

"I see…" Sampson sighed. He felt his rage boil up in his gut, but he forced it down. If he started a fight here he'd never win. He guided Sophia towards the door. "Come on, Sophia." He whispered. "We'll…figure something out."

Just as they were about to leave, Sophia felt a warm hand take her own. She looked back, her face bathed in a look of bewilderment.

"Don't go." The boy pleaded, squeezing her hand. He looked back at Nickolas. "Please let her stay, Daddy. She can be my new friend." He said, his black eyes round and innocent.

"Rainier, it isn't as simple as that. We can't have a parentless fledgling running around. If the Extinguishers attack, there'll be no one to protect her." Nickolas tried to explain.

Young Rainier's dark brows angled sharply over his eyes with determination. "Then I'll protect her." He stated, his small voice surprisingly forceful.

Nickolas and his wife shared a looked, then nodded in agreement. "There's…only one way that I will allow both of you to join my coven." Said Nickolas, stroking his short beard as he pondered. "Your blood must become my own. You understand?"

Sampson's brows furrowed in confusion. "I'm afraid I don't."

"Your girl looks to be about the same age as my boy. He already seems to have taken a liking to her. What do you say to a marriage contract? Rainier and Sophia will become bond mates after their second decade. Then the Haze and Sweet families will become one and the same. Rainier will become leader after me and I know you wouldn't try to kill your own son-in-law. Would you?"

"An arranged marriage? Surely there must be a simpler way. What about all the people who've joined you before us? Did you promise children to them as well?" Hissed Sampson, baring his teeth at the rival male.

"It's okay, Daddy." Sophia squeaked meekly, clasping her father's hand. "I'll marry Rainier if you'll stay with me."

Sampson felt his heart stop beating for a brief moment. It broke at her words. "You don't know what you're promising, child." He said softly.

"Do we have a deal or not?" Asked Nickolas, offering him his hand.

Sampson stared at the coven leader's hand. It might as well have belonged to the devil himself. But seeing the pleading in his daughter's eyes, her fright at the possibility of being alone, and the threatening aura that seemed to envelop Nickolas Sweet, he had little choice. "You have a deal." He said in a barely there voice as he shook the man's hand and gave his daughter's future away.


End file.
